Fashion model Kidd’s love of cars is well-known. She has notched up some notable successes on the race track and recently was co-host on The Classic Car Show as screened on Channel 5. Perry’s persona is every bit as eminent. She is the ‘Queen of the Pit-lane’ having anchored Formula One, MotoGP, Superbikes and Speedway programmes on UK television.
Now Kidd and Perry will be teaming up and maximising their automotive knowledge as key members of a high-profile panel trying to solve the long-running conundrum: which nation really has produced the world’s greatest cars?
“It’s one of those wonderful deliberations that’s run late into many long nights,” acknowledges Kidd. “I’ve always had a deep-seated love for Italian cars but, equally, could make a strong case for a number of other countries. America has its muscle cars, Germany its high-tech luxury limos, France its quirky style and Britain, of course, is the home to great marques such as Aston Martin and Jaguar. The more I think about it, the tougher the decision is going to be!”
The eagerly-anticipated Great Debate, which Perry will host, will be one of many highlights in a packed programme of high-octane entertainment on Thursday’s glittering Preview Day. As well as providing show-goers with lots of fuel for thought, The Great Debate will act as the perfect prologue to the Classic Six Nations Cup – the public’s opportunity to vote for its own favourite car-making nation.
Abarth turns back the Clock 50 years
Abarth UK is preparing to turn the racing clock back 50 years with plans for an exciting display at this year’s London Classic Car Show.
The performance car brand’s exhibition stand (D21) will feature new and old – with plans to show the recently-launched Abarth biposto Record alongside the classic Abarth Monoposto Record Class G racing car from 1965.
It will also use the occasion to announce the UK launch of the Officine Abarth Classiche, the official Turin-based workshop where classic Abarth cars are repaired, restored and certified for customers lucky enough to own one of these legendary models.
The new Abarth biposto Record celebrates the 50th anniversary of Karl Abarth’s astonishing legacy of 133 international records. A perfect combination of performance, Italian style and attention to detail, only 133 examples will be built, to recognise the long line of racing successes.
Abarth founder Karl Abarth drove an Abarth Monoposto Record, Class G at Monza, winning the acceleration record on 400 metres and 500 metres. Unable to find the right driver, he decided to lose 30 kilograms in weight to slip into the tight cockpit himself.
Buyers wanted for rare classics
A one-off Ferrari estate, a Mercedes SL that blends classic looks with modern performance and a GT40 that costs £100,000 rather than $11m… these are just three of the mouth-watering attractions promised by top specialist dealers at the London Classic Car Show, which opens in little over a week (18-21 February).
There will be plenty of Ferraris at the Show, but none as rare as the metallic green 330GT Vignale Special being offered for sale by London-based dealer Graeme Hunt.
Created by Italian coachbuilder Vignale in 1968 for Luigi Chinetti Jr, son of the American Ferrari importer, the car started life as a standard 1965 330GT. But its dramatic glass-backed shooting brake body has no panel in common with the donor car, making it a genuinely unique machine.
Graeme Hunt will also be offering a pair of rare British classics – a 1954 Bentley R-type Continental and a one-off 2008 Aston Martin DBS ‘Casino Royale’ Special, built for Barbara Broccoli, daughter of James Bond film maker Cubby Broccoli.
The best of both worlds will be offered by The SL Shop. As the name implies, the company specialises in Mercedes-Benz convertibles… but with a twist. Being given its world debut at the show is its 300SL SportLine.
Based on a classic R107 SL model, the 3.0-litre six-cylinder engine has been blessed with modern performance thanks to the adoption of a fuel injection system from a later M-B model to give better performance and throttle response.
The SL Shop will also be showing a fully restored 500SL to show off the skills of its workshop team.
Technically the GT40 is an evocation of the Shelby-developed fast Ford that won Le Mans, but the South African-built Superformance machines are so close to the real thing – some 70 per cent is interchangeable with the original – that they are recognised by the Shelby American World Registry.
Hand-built in an ultra modern factory, the Superformance GT40 is offered in MkI or MkII guise with left- or right-hand drive and with a choice of potent V8 engines from 5.6 to 7.0 litres.
The only thing that isn’t interchangeable with an original is the price. The Superformance cars, which are imported to the UK by Le Mans Coupes Ltd, start at just £99,800 (plus VAT)… one of the four ex-Works Gulf Le Mans racers sold for $11 million in 2012.
“With Ford returning to Le Mans for the first time since 1969, courtesy of its all-new GT, it’s small wonder that UK sales of the Superformance cars are at an all-time high,” said Nigel Hulme, managing director of Le Mans Coupes.
It’s not just dealers at the Show. Peugeot, celebrating its 120th anniversary this year, will be showcasing future classics like the new 208 GTi and 308 GTi by Peugeot Sport models alongside competition classics from the past.
Stars of the stand will be the 1985 205 T16, the road-going version of its Group B rally winner, and the four-wheel steered 405 T16 which won the Pike’s Peak hillclimb in a record time in 1988. The driver that day, Ari Vatanen, will officially open the show at the VIP Preview evening on Thursday, 18 February.
Although only in its second year, the London Classic Car Show has already established itself as the classic car event of the year. Such was the success of the inaugural show that the 2016 edition has doubled in size and promises more of everything… more to see and do, more halls, more fun and, of course, more desirable classics.
And at the heart of the show is its unique feature, The Grand Avenue, which runs through its centre and along which many star cars will be driven, including 60 top classics representing their countries – Italy, France, Germany, the UK, USA and Japan – in the Classic Six Nations Cup.
Full details of these as well as even more affordable Family and Late Entry tickets can be found via the show’s officialwebsite – www.thelondonclassiccarshow.co.uk
